The Great Hall

Diana got Darien's message besides, Helena was there too. "Like I'd befriend a Slytherin."

Ana relaxed slightly, although was still onfused and annoyed.
Darien rolled his eyes. "You Gryffindors are so pathetic. As if any Slytherin in their right mind would send you lot notes. You are all just jealous of the Slytherin bad-boy magnetism."
Ana rolled her eyes. "Slytherins aren't all male, Darien."
"Fine, the incredible awesomeness of the Slytherins. Happy?"
"Ridiculously." Ana smirked.

"Please, don't talk to me about magnetism," Diana said. "You're not even my type."

Darien knew she was just saying that...but it still hurt.
Ana folded her arms and smirked, watching with an amused air.
Darien winced, in a clearly fake manner. "Oh that stings. I would never date some greasy Gryffindor. My type has class...which none of your house can afford."

That stung.

Diana scoffed. "Of course, Slytherins only date Slytherins, which explains the mental damage done on you lot."

At this Helena chuckled. It seemed, as if she'd forgiven Diana. For the time being anyway.

"Pure blood is like a pedigree... You lot are some wierd breed of mongerel."
Darien inwardly swore at the awkwardness of the situation.

Ana stepped forwards slightly. "So what was the note all about?"

Darien glanced at Diana, praying she had an explanation.

"Well," Diana thought quick. "Professor Delanquar paired us up... something about inter-house unity or what not."

The more Diana spoke, the more confidence she gain with the story, the more convincing she became. "Vaight here sent me the note to set a date on when we would do our project on... Animagi." Diana put particular emphasis on the word date for Darien's benefit.

"Yes..."
Darien almost breathed a sigh of relief, but contained it.
"Inter-house unity...DeLanquar must be going mental. Not going to happen. Never. However, as I do need to pass this subject, we really should be working on it right now."
He turned and rolled his eyes, acting reluctant and sulky.
"See you later little sis. Come on Gryffindor, we need to go work on our project."

Diana rolled her eyes. "Yeah, alright. Hel, I'll see you at dinner."

And Diana walked out of the hall with Darien leaving Helena and Ana alone.

Ana glared at the Gryffindor for a moment, before turning and leaving the hall.
She still needed to finish her homework...
But Darien's weirdness was more important.
She followed her brother and Diana, disillusioned and unseen. Time to find out what was really going on.

Helena matched the Slytherin's glare with one of her own.
Diana's sparring with the older Slytherin seemed real enough but it seemed half-baked. Helena decided to follow her friend once again.

Kiara walked in to the great hall hoping she would be able to talk to Viper about her brother.

Going up to the staff table she pulled out a chair and began to eat a bit of breakfast.

Viper entered the Great Hall in a better mood than she had been in a while, to the point where she didn't even feel the need to summon a goblet of wine, for the first time in years. Taking a seat beside the Headmisress, she opted for a black coffee instead.

Kiara bit her lip, Viper looked to be in a good mood for once.

Sighing she pulled out her file which she put in to a folder.

"umm Viper? Can I talk to you for a moment?"

Viper raised an eyebrow. "Of course, Kiara. Is everything alright?"

Kiara glanced at the folder in her hand and said.

"I hope so.. err you know I was auror right? well one of the early cases I had was about 5 years ago it was the only case I ever refused to do, and the ministry replaced me as prosecutor with someone else"

Placing the file in front of Viper.

"This file is Dracovan's case file"

((BRB in a hour))

Viper eyed the envelope with an expressionless face. Her talk with Dracovan the previous night had clarfiied many things. However, his escape from Azkaban needed no explanation whatsoever, for it was obvious how he did it. It was merely a suprise to her that it took so long.

Lifting her vivid green eyes to Kiara's sapphire ones, she hesitated, wondering if she could trust the Headmistress.

Seeing Viper hesitate Kiara continued with her part in her brothers case.

"I strongly disagreed with his imprisonment, and I appealed his sentence a number of times, each time the ministry over ruled me on the matter. I know what his sentence was 15 years, so unless someone in the ministry finally approved one of my appeals on his sentence or..."

Kiara whispered into Viper's ear so one else could over hear.

"He escaped.."

Viper gaped in mock-suprise. "No, really? I thought Hermione bailed him out as a favor to me!" she scoffed before transfiguring her coffee to her usual.

"Kiara, my brother lost everything: his fiancee, his home, all because of his name. Now, for once, his ancestry and gifts provided his escape, and I for one, refuse to take that from him." she said as she stood from her chair to return back to her chambers.

Before she fled, she whispered into Kiara's ear. "Our name has cursed us for so long, but just this once, they have saved him..."

With that, Viper fled in a blind, emotional haze, not noticing the bloody baron who she had walked right thriough.

"Wh-really, Amaranth! Is it so difficult to watch you're step? Honestly!" he sputtered, ruffled by the fact Viper showed no acknowledgement of his presence.

"What's happened with her?" he asked Kiara, curiously, when he realized he had interrupted something.

Kiara sighed "Nothing happend to her exactly...." sighing again she looked up at the Baron.

"Excuse me Baron, I think I need to do some damage control"

Kiara then fled in the same direction Viper had gone, indending on setting something right.

((where to?))

((actually, i meant for the Baron to tell you everything...)

((Oh.. so do I make it up then?))

((um, no, I'll have the Baron follow you....))

"Headmistress!" Baron called out as he glided towards the young woman. "Headmistress, please, allow me to be of some assistance! What exactly happened? Amaranth was in such a good mood this morning..."

Casting the silencing charm to no one could hear them Kiara explain.

"I know of her brothers stay in Azkaban and know I know he eascaped, I do hope she doesn't think I am turning him in or anything. I have begged the minstry to reconcider his sentence. I won't send him back escaped convict or not"

The Baron nodded. "Does Amaranth know that? After all, she has spent much of her life under interrogation..." he paused for a moment. "Did she happen to tell you how her brother escaped?" he wondered how much if the potions mistress trusted Kiara enough to let her in on the Viper family secret.